Scrapbooking Layout Tips

Read these 13 Scrapbooking Layout Tips tips to make your life smarter, better, faster and wiser. Each tip is approved by our Editors and created by expert writers so great we call them Gurus. LifeTips is the place to go when you need to know about Scrapbook tips and hundreds of other topics.

Scrapbooking Layout Tips
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What are some methods of aging paper and some terms or names to describe this technique?

Making your paper look aged or weathered is becoming a popular technique for scrapbookers. There are several ways you can make your cardstock or scrapbook paper look "aged".

One techique is to wad the paper into a ball and make it wrinkled. You can do this with dry paper or for a bolder impession mist your paper first. After you have wadded the paper in a ball unwrinkle the paper, let it dry and sand the inside with a fine grained sand paper. If you are using damp paper then you can iron the paper by covering it with towel and using the heat from the iron to dry your paper. This technique will set your creases and give the paper a sort of "weathered" look.

Sand paper can be used alone to sand off some of the color of on your paper, which will make it look "aged".

Texturizing your paper with dry embossing or other methods and then sanding the images can also give that "aged" image on your layouts.

A signature page is a great idea for any album and can be the second page or the very last page of the book. One idea for this scrapbook page layout is to include a photo of you (perhaps working on the album) and journaling about the reasons behind why you put the album together. Those reasons can be as simple as noticing you had a lot of photos of one particular activity or really special as in the case of a tribute album. When choosing a photo of yourself, you could use one of you working on the album, posing with the album subject or a really nice recent shot. Don't feel modest about doing a signature page. Albums take a lot of work and time and future readers will appreciate the contact with its creator.

One of the most precious accents to a child's scrapbook pages is their handprint. Handprints are popular in baby books or grandparent scrapbooks. You can create a page border with tiny handprints or cut them out and strategically place them on your pages. You can also use them for backgrounds.

To make the prints, prepare a flat surface. Next, put acrylic paint into a paper plate. Now, have your child place his or her hands in the paint and then on your scrapbook surface, one at a time. Acrylic paint is easier to wash off their hands then other products or inks. When the paint dries, you will have a permanent record of your child's handprints.

Do this periodically as your children grow and you can see how their hands gradually get larger as they get older.

Quilt pages look complex but are easy to put together. Here is a quick idea for that unique scrapbook layout: Measure your page (square pages are the easiest to work with), and divide the width and length into thirds, and round down the measurements. Cut nine squares to fit. For example a 12 x12" page would need nine 3.5" x 3.5". squares. Arrange the squares on the page three by three. Then, using a template or cutting tool, crop five photos into circles or hearts. Place a photo in the middle square and on each of the corner squares. Of course any quilt page is not complete without the addition of pigma pen 'stitching'.

One disadvantage to using chalk for your scrapbooking project is it tends to be messy and can stain fabrics, carpet and other surfaces. When you are using your chalks keep them away from the edge of your working area so they don't accidentally get spilled. Also wear an apron to protect your clothing.

Chalk can be purchased at scrapbook retailers; craft stores or discount scrapbook suppliers.

When deciding on a scrapbook page layout, there are rules to remember when using patterned paper. Never use a background paper with a pattern larger than the smallest photographed head. Use a plain paper in a similar tone for your journal block. Don't be concerned if you can't find the right photos to use with the lovely patterned paper you purchased, as patterned paper is generally more tricky to match than plain paper.

I am making a baby scrapbook for my goddaughter’s baby. I am relatively new at scrapbooking. The album I purchased has a "name plate" on the cover (I’m not sure that is what it’s called). It’s the kind that you see on the old card catalogs in libraries. I think I’m supposed to put something in

For the nameplate on the scrapbook you could use letter tiles or tags depending on how large the frame is on the album. Stamps are an easy way to create words. You could use a fancy font like calligraphy and spell out the babies name on cardstock and then layer it on patterned background paper. Stencils are also an easy solution to creating fancy letters to display the name. If you are really ambitious you could embroider the letters and mount it on a paper to place in the frame. I would top it off with a bow or some sort of embellishment to dress up the book a little.

Until you have some experience with scrapbook page layouts, always do your your journaling prior to adhering any stickers. While there are a lot of neat embellishments out there, this will avoid the temptation to over-use stickers to fill up all that blank space.

Fabric flowers make great embellishments on scrapbook pages. These flowers have a long life span and unlike plastic flowers, fabric flowers look more realistic.

All you need to make the flowers is fabric, pieces of old nylon, glue and wire.

Directions:

Make a wire loop. This will be one petal. Next, apply glue to the petal, and place fabric on top. Now, stretch a piece of an old nylon over the loop and secure with tape. Continue making loops until you have enough to make a flower. Then, twist the wires together. Fold out your flower and secure it your scrapbook page with adhesive.

Flowers are extremely versatile and can be sporadically placed on your scrapbook pages. They can be used with a variety of themes and can create many different looks for your page layouts. Your supplies can be purchased at discount scrapbook supply outlets, craft stores or a fabric retailer.

When deciding on a scrapbook page layout, you need to consider the purpose of the page. Here is a neat idea for using a child's hand print. Trace the hand or foot print either onto the page or onto cardstock, and fill the inside with facts about the child. Alternatively, trace your child's hand and crop a photo to mount on the palm. Then write a personality trait or something special about the child along or at the tip of each finger.

A unique scrapbook layout idea is to document your families "exciting news" photos in tabloid style. Choose an old English style script for the headlines and a Times Roman font for the journaling. Lay out your photos and journaling in columns, just like a newspaper. Sporting events, birthdays, wedding proposals, etc. all lend themselves to this type of scrapbook page layout.

Create a focus on your scrapbook page layout to give the eye somewhere to start looking on the page. If you are using more than three photos, the easiest way to create a focus is to use a distinctive title. For a classic effect, mat the title to match the photograph mats.

Rub-on transfers are very versatile for your scrapbooking pages and layouts. There are many places you can use rub-on transfers for your scrapbook activities. The easiest place to use the rub-ons is on a flat surface like cardstock, patterned paper or photographs. Rub-ons are fairly easy to use but you may need practice when it comes to getting them straight and even on your surface. Most rub-on transfers come with a tool like a piece of wood to use for rubbing. After you have mastered rub-ons for flat surfaces you can move on to the next level which would be using rub-on transfers on material, ribbon, twill, glass, metal and mesh. For these types of material you need to make sure you use rub-on transfers that are sticky enough to adhere to your object (some brands tend to be stickier than others).

Rub-ons transfers can also be used with heating guns or you can bake them on shrink plastic. They will not melt so you can emboss over them or bake them with your shrink plastic projects. Although some rub-on transfers may be fragile and you have to be careful not to rip or tear the rub-on they can be used to add appeal to many scrapbook layouts and/or craft projects

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